Surgical stapling device with laser probe

ABSTRACT

A tool assembly includes a cartridge assembly or a heating assembly along with an anvil assembly, and a drive assembly. The drive assembly includes a working member and a laser probe that is pivotally supported on the working member and emits a laser beam. The laser probe is positioned between the cartridge and anvil assemblies such that the laser beam extends across a tissue gap of the tool assembly when the tool assembly is in the clamped position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to, and the benefit of, U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/071,073 filed on Aug. 27,2020, the entire content of which is incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD

This disclosure is directed to surgical stapling devices and, moreparticularly, to surgical stapling devices including a tool assemblyhaving a cutting assembly for cutting tissue.

BACKGROUND

Surgical stapling devices for simultaneously cutting and stapling tissueare known in the art and are commonly used during surgical procedures toreduce the time required to perform the surgical procedure and tofacilitate endoscopic access to a surgical site. Performing a surgicalprocedure endoscopically reduces the amount of trauma inflicted on apatient during a surgical procedure to minimize patient discomfort andreduce patient recovery times.

Typically, endoscopic stapling devices include a tool assembly having afirst jaw and a second jaw that can pivot in relation to the first jawbetween an open or spaced position and a closed or clamped position. Oneof the jaws supports a cartridge assembly that includes a plurality ofstaples and the other jaw supports an anvil assembly that includes ananvil plate that includes staple deforming pockets that receive anddeform legs of the staples when the staples are ejected from the staplecartridge. The cartridge assembly also includes a knife blade to cut ortransect tissue clamped between the jaws.

Surgical instruments including a knife blade present the risk ofclinicians accidentally cutting themselves on the knife blade whenhandling the surgical instruments, especially when using surgicalstapling devices that require removal and replacement of the cartridgeassembly. A continuing need exists for a surgical stapling device thatminimizes the risk to a clinician of accidental cutting by the knifeblade of the surgical stapling device.

SUMMARY

One aspect of the disclosure is directed to a tool assembly including acartridge assembly having a staple cartridge that supports a pluralityof staples. The cartridge assembly defines an elongated slot and iscoupled to an anvil assembly by a pivot member to facilitate movement ofthe tool assembly between open and clamped positions. The tool assemblydefines a tissue gap between the cartridge assembly and the anvilassembly when the tool assembly is in the clamped position. The driveassembly includes a drive beam having proximal and distal ends and aworking member supported on the distal end of the drive beam. Theworking member includes an upper beam, a lower beam, and a verticalstrut interconnecting the upper beam and the lower beam. The driveassembly is moveable to move the working member through the toolassembly to eject the plurality of staples from the staple cartridge.The working member supports a laser probe that is positioned to emit alaser beam across the tissue gap as the working member moves through thetool assembly to cut tissue positioned within the tissue gap.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a tool assembly including acartridge assembly having a staple cartridge that supports a pluralityof staples. The cartridge assembly defines an elongated slot and iscoupled to an anvil assembly by a pivot member to facilitate movement ofthe tool assembly between open and clamped positions. The tool assemblydefines a tissue gap between the cartridge assembly and the anvilassembly when the tool assembly is in the clamped position. The driveassembly includes a drive beam having proximal and distal ends and aworking member supported on the distal end of the drive beam. Theworking member includes an upper beam, a lower beam, and a verticalstrut interconnecting the upper beam and the lower beam. The verticalstrut defines a recess that extends across the tissue gap. A blade issupported within the recess and extends across the tissue gap when thetool assembly is in the clamped position. The recess also supports alaser probe that is adapted to emit a laser beam within the recessacross the tissue gap.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a tool assembly includes a heatingassembly that defines an elongated slot and has one or more heating padsarranged on either side of the elongated slot. The heating assembly iscoupled to an anvil assembly by a pivot member to facilitate movement ofthe tool assembly between open and clamped positions. The tool assemblydefines a tissue gap between the heating assembly and the anvil assemblywhen the tool assembly is in the clamped position. The drive assemblyincludes a drive beam having proximal and distal ends and a workingmember supported on the distal end of the drive beam. The working memberincludes an upper beam, a lower beam, and a vertical strutinterconnecting the upper beam and the lower beam. The drive assembly ismoveable to move the working member through the tool assembly. Theworking member supports a laser probe that is positioned to emit a laserbeam across the tissue gap as the working member is moved through thetool assembly to cut tissue positioned within the tissue gap.

In yet another aspect of the disclosure, the vertical strut defines arecess and the laser probe is supported on the working member to emitthe laser beam across the recess.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a control line connects the laserprobe to a handle assembly and the control line is partially embedded inthe working member.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a sensor is disposed in the recessthat detects the laser beam when the laser beam is emitted from thelaser probe.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the recess of the vertical struthas an open distal end that receives tissue positioned within the tissuegap.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the blade extends between the topand bottom ends of the recess.

In another aspect of the disclosure the blade is arcuate and convex.

In another aspect of the disclosure, a pair of bipolar heating pads isarranged on either side of the elongated slot.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the heating assembly is fixed inplace and the anvil assembly is moveable to move the tool assemblybetween the open and clamped positions.

Other features of the disclosure will be appreciated from the followingdescription.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various aspects of the disclosed surgical stapling device are describedherein below with reference to the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of an exemplary aspect of thedisclosed surgical stapling device with a tool assembly of the staplingdevice in an open position;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of an exemplary aspect of thedisclosed surgical stapling device with a tool assembly in an openposition;

FIG. 3A is a side perspective view of a drive assembly of the surgicalstapling device shown in FIG. 1 with a laser probe;

FIG. 3B is a side perspective view of an alternate working member forthe drive assembly shown in FIG. 3A with a laser probe;

FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view of a drive assembly engaged with aworking member shown in FIG. 3A illustrating engagement between a laserbeam and tissue clamped between the jaws of the tool assembly during thefiring process;

FIG. 4A is a side perspective view of an aspect of a drive assembly of asurgical stapling device with a laser probe and a blade;

FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of a drive assembly engaged with theworking member shown in FIG. 4A illustrating engagement between a laserbeam and blade combination and the tissue clamped between the jaws ofthe tool assembly during the firing process;

FIG. 5A is an enlarged perspective view of jaw members of a toolassembly in an open position;

FIG. 5B is an enlarged perspective view of an alternate for the toolassembly shown in FIG. 5A, also in an open position;

FIG. 6A is a side perspective view of a drive assembly of the surgicalstapling device shown in FIG. 5 with a laser probe; and

FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of a drive assembly engaged with theworking member shown in FIG. 6A illustrating engagement between a laserbeam and tissue clamped between the jaws of the tool assembly during thefiring process.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The disclosed surgical stapling device will now be described in detailwith reference to the drawings in which like reference numeralsdesignate identical or corresponding elements in each of the severalviews. However, it is to be understood that aspects of the disclosuredescribed herein are merely exemplary of the disclosure and may beembodied in various forms. Well-known functions or constructions are notdescribed in detail to avoid obscuring the disclosure in unnecessarydetail. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosedherein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis forthe claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in theart to variously employ the disclosure in virtually any appropriatelydetailed structure. In addition, directional terms such as front, rear,upper, lower, top, bottom, distal, proximal, and similar terms are usedto assist in understanding the description and are not intended to limitthe disclosure.

In this description, the term “proximal” is used generally to refer tothat portion of the device that is closer to a clinician, while the term“distal” is used generally to refer to that portion of the device thatis farther from the clinician. In addition, the term “endoscopic” isgenerally used to refer to endoscopic, laparoscopic, arthroscopic,and/or any other procedure conducted through small diameter incision orcannula. Further, the term “clinician” is used generally to refer tomedical personnel including doctors, nurses, and support personnel.

FIGS. 1-6B illustrate various aspects of the disclosed surgical staplingdevice shown generally as stapling device 10. The stapling device 10 asillustrated in FIG. 1 includes a handle assembly 12, an elongate body14, and a tool assembly 16. The elongate body 14 defines a longitudinalaxis “X” and includes a proximal portion supported on the handleassembly 12 and a distal portion that supports the tool assembly 16. Insome aspects of the disclosure, the tool assembly 16 forms part of adisposable loading unit 18 that includes the tool assembly 16 and aproximal body portion 18 a. In certain aspects of the disclosure, theproximal body portion 18 a includes a distal portion that supports thetool assembly 16 and a proximal portion that is adapted to beselectively coupled to and uncoupled from the distal portion of theelongate body 14. In other aspects of the disclosure, the tool assembly16 is fixedly secured to the distal portion of the elongate body 14.

FIG. 1 illustrates the handle assembly 12 of the stapling device 10which includes a stationary handle 20 and a firing trigger 22 that ismovable in relation to the stationary handle 20 to actuate the toolassembly 16, i.e., approximate the tool assembly 16 and fire staples. Asillustrated, the firing trigger 22 is pivotably supported adjacent thestationary handle 20 and is manually movable through an actuation stroketo actuate the tool assembly 16. It is envisioned that the staplingdevice 10 can include an electrically powered handle assembly or,alternately, be adapted to be coupled to a robotically controlledsystem. In some aspects of the disclosure, the handle assembly 12supports a rotation knob 26 that supports an articulation lever 28. Therotation knob 26 is supported on a distal portion of the handle assembly12 and supports the elongate body 14 such that rotation of the rotationknob 26 in relation to the handle assembly 12 causes rotation of theelongate body 14 about the longitudinal axis “X”. The articulation lever28 is movably supported on the rotation knob 26 to articulate the toolassembly 16 from a position aligned with the longitudinal axis “X” ofthe elongate body 14 and positions misaligned with the longitudinal axis“X” of the elongate body 14. For a more detailed description of astapling device including many of the components described above, see,e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,361 (“the '361 patent”).

FIG. 2 illustrates the tool assembly 16 which includes a first jaw 30that supports a cartridge assembly 31, a second jaw 32 that supports ananvil assembly 33, and a drive assembly 34 (FIG. 3A). The cartridgeassembly 31 and the anvil assembly 33 are secured together with a pivotmember or pin 36 (FIG. 3C) to pivot in relation to each other such thatthe tool assembly 16 can move between an open position and a clampedposition (not shown). In the clamped position, the cartridge assembly 31and the anvil assembly 33 define a tissue gap “G” (FIG. 3C). In aspectsof the disclosure, the anvil assembly 33 can pivot about the pivot pin36 in relation to the cartridge assembly 31 and the elongate body 14,and the cartridge assembly 31 is stationary in relation to the elongatebody 14.

The cartridge assembly 31 includes a channel 31 a and a staple cartridge42 that is received within the channel 31 a. In further aspects, thestaple cartridge 42 is removable from the channel to allow forreplacement of spent or used staple cartridges 42 to facilitate reuse ofthe stapling device 10. The cartridge assembly 31 further defines anelongated slot 41. Similarly, the anvil assembly 33 defines an elongatedslot 43. The elongated slots 41, 43 facilitate passage of a distalportion of the drive assembly 34 through the cartridge and anvilassemblies 31, 33. For a more detailed description of various componentsof the cartridge assembly 31 and the anvil assembly 33, see the '361patent.

FIGS. 3A-6B illustrate the drive assembly 34 which includes a flexibledrive beam 50 and a working member 52. The working member 52 includes afirst beam 56, a second beam 54, and a vertical strut 58 that extendsbetween and supports the upper and lower beams 56, 54. The verticalstrut 58 defines a recess 90 having an open distal end that ispositioned between the first beam 56 and the second beam 58. The workingmember 52 is movable through the tool assembly 16 such that the firstand second beams 56 and 54 engage the first and second jaws 30 and 32 tomove the first and second jaws 30 and 32 between the open and clampedpositions. When the working member 52 is moved through the tool assembly16, the recess 90 in the vertical strut 58 extends across the tissue gap“G” to receive tissue clamped between the cartridge and anvil assemblies31 and 33. For a detailed description of the operation of the workingmember 52 of the drive assembly 34, see the '361 Patent.

In another aspect of the disclosure, the tool assembly 16 can be rotated360 degrees about its central axis via the rotation knob 26 such thatthe relative positioning of the first and second jaws 30 and 32 can beinverted, as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. The vertical strut 58 of theworking member 52 includes an upper portion 60 and a lower portion 62.The working member 52 also supports a laser probe 70 that is directedacross the recess of the vertical strut 58. The recess 90 is defined bythe upper and lower portions 60 and 62 of the vertical strut 58. In someaspects of the disclosure, the laser probe 70 is supported in the lowerportion 62 (FIG. 3a ) of the vertical strut 58, however it is envisionedthat the laser probe 70 could be supported in the upper portion 60 (FIG.3b ) of the vertical strut 58. In both configurations, the laser probe70 is pointed in a direction to project a beam across the recess 90 intothe other of the upper or lower portions 60, 62 of the vertical strut58.

A control line 96, e.g. a fiber optic cable, extends through thevertical strut 58 to deliver power to the laser probe 70. In aspects ofthe disclosure, the control line 96 can be partially embedded in theworking member 52 of the drive assembly 34 and operably connected to apower source coupled to or supported within the handle assembly 12 (FIG.1).

FIG. 3C illustrates the tool assembly 16 of the stapling device 10during the firing process. The tool assembly 16 is shown in the clampedposition compressing tissue “T” between anvil assembly 33 and cartridgeassembly 31. As shown, the laser probe 70 is supported on the upperportion 60 of the vertical strut 58 of the working member 52 and isdirected across the recess 90. The flexible drive beam 50 is shown in apartially advanced position with the working member 52 positioned withinthe tool assembly 16. While being driven through cartridge assembly 31,the recess 90 is positioned to extend across the tissue gap “G” definedbetween the cartridge and anvil assemblies 31 and 33 such that thetissue “T” is received within the recess 90 with the laser probe 70directed at the tissue “T”. This configuration allows the laser probe 70which is supported on the upper portion 60 of the vertical strut to emita laser beam 72 towards the lower portion 62 of the vertical strut 58through the tissue “T” within the recess 90 as the working member 52 istranslated through the tool assembly 16. Conversely, if the laser probe70 were to be supported on the lower portion 62 of the vertical strut,as shown in FIG. 3B, the laser beam 72 is emitted towards the upperportion 60 of the vertical strut 58 to slice through the tissue “T”within the recess 90 as the working member 52 is translated through thetool assembly 16.

As illustrated in FIG. 3C, the laser probe 70 is positioned proximallyof an actuation sled 80 within the cartridge assembly 31. The actuationsled 80 is advanced via engagement with the working member 52 throughthe tool assembly 16 and is positioned distally of the laser probe 70 tostaple the tissue “T” prior to cutting the tissue “T” with the laserprobe 70. For a detailed description of the operation of the actuationsled 80, see the '361 Patent. After the stapling device 10 is fired,power to the laser probe 70 can be removed to prevent injury to aclinician during disposable or replacement of the cartridge assembly 31.

In other aspects of the disclosure, a sensor 74 can be installed in therecess 90 to detect emission of laser beam 72. The sensor 74 can be usedto deactivate laser probe 70, measure intensity of emitted laser beam72, or to indicate to a clinician that the laser probe 70 is activelyemitting laser beam 74.

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate a working member 52 of drive assembly 34having a similar configuration to the drive assembly 34 shown in FIGS.3B and 3C with the addition of a surgical blade 76 that spans the lengthof recess 90. Facing distally outward, the surgical blade 76 ispositioned such that when the stapling device 10 is fired, the laserbeam 72 emitted by the laser probe 70 will engage the compressed tissue“T” first, and the surgical blade 76 follows behind to provideredundancy to ensure that tissue “T” is cleanly cut. The redundancyprovided by the surgical blade 76 also ensures that even in the eventthat the laser probe 70 loses functionality unexpectedly, the clinicianwould still be able to use the tool assembly 16 to clamp down, cuttissue “T”, and seal the patient's tissue “T”. In certain aspects of thedisclosure, the surgical blade 76 has a curved concave cutting edge.

FIGS. 5A and 5B illustrate other exemplary aspects of the disclosed toolassembly shown generally as tool assembly 116. Here, a heating assembly100 including a plurality of electrically conductive heating pads 102 isused in place of the cartridge assembly 31 including deformable staples(not shown) to seal the tissue “T” when dissected. The electricallyconductive pads 102 are arranged on either side of the elongated slots41, 43 and conduct electrosurgical energy through the compressed tissue“T” to create a seal in the tissue “T”. In other aspects, theelectrically conductive heating pads 102 can be bipolar or monopolar,and can be positioned on the lower jaw 30, the second jaw 32, or both.

As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the working member 52 including the laserprobe 70 (FIG. 4a ) can be used with the heating assembly 100 to cut ortransect the tissue “T”. The electrically conductive heating pads 102compress and coagulate the tissue “T” to seal the tissue “T” without aneed for mechanical staples to be deployed before the tissue “T” is cutwith the laser probe 70. As such, this configuration circumvents theneed to remove and reinstall replacement staple cartridges orreplacement surgical blades to facilitate reuse of the surgical device.

Although the disclosed working member 52 of the drive assembly 34 of thetool assembly 16 is illustrated to include laser probe 70 disposed in arecess 90, it is envisioned that the working member may include norecess 90 and instead only consist of either a lower beam 62 or an upperbeam 60, such that emitted laser beam 72 is free to slice through to theopposing jaw member. In such configurations the sensor 74 may take theform an elongated strip installed along the length of the opposing jaw,the sensor 74 will simultaneously act as a buffer preventing emittedlaser beam 72 from damaging the adjacent tissue. For example, theelongated sensor strip may be disposed within the elongated slot 43 ofthe anvil assembly 33 as shown in FIG. 2, such that the emitted laserbeam 74 can be detected at any point along the length of the elongatedslot 43.

Persons skilled in the art will understand that the devices and methodsspecifically described herein and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings are non-limiting exemplary aspects of the disclosure. It isenvisioned that the elements and features illustrated or described inconnection with one exemplary aspect of the disclosure may be combinedwith the elements and features of another without departing from thescope of the disclosure. As well, one skilled in the art will appreciatefurther features and advantages of the disclosure based on theabove-described aspects. Accordingly, the disclosure is not to belimited by what has been particularly shown and described, except asindicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tool assembly comprising: a cartridge assemblyincluding a staple cartridge supporting a plurality of staples, thestaple cartridge defining an elongated slot; an anvil assembly coupledto the cartridge assembly by a pivot member to facilitate movement ofthe tool assembly between open and clamped positions, the tool assemblydefining a tissue gap between the cartridge assembly and the anvilassembly when the tool assembly is in the clamped position; a driveassembly including a drive beam having proximal and distal ends and aworking member supported on the distal end of the drive beam, the driveassembly configured to move the working member through the tool assemblyto eject the plurality of staples from the staple cartridge; and a laserprobe supported on the working member and positioned to emit a laserbeam across the tissue gap as the working member is moved through thetool assembly to cut tissue positioned within the tissue gap.
 2. Thetool assembly of claim 1, wherein the working member includes an upperbeam, a lower beam, and a vertical strut interconnecting the upper beamand the lower beam
 3. The tool assembly of claim 2, wherein the verticalstrut defines a recess and the laser probe is supported on the workingmember to emit the laser beam across the recess.
 4. The tool assembly ofclaim 3, further including a control line adapted to operably connectthe laser probe to a power source, the control line being partiallyembedded in the working member.
 5. The tool assembly of claim 4, furtherincluding a sensor disposed in the recess to detect the laser beam whenthe laser beam is emitted from the laser probe.
 6. The tool assembly ofclaim 5, wherein the sensor is configured to deactivate the laser probe.7. The tool assembly of claim 5, wherein the sensor is configured tomeasure the intensity of the emitted laser beam.
 8. The tool assembly ofclaim 5, wherein the sensor is configured to indicate that the laserprobe is actively emitting the laser beam.
 9. A tool assemblycomprising: a cartridge assembly including a staple cartridge supportinga plurality of staples, the staple cartridge defining an elongated slot;an anvil assembly coupled to the cartridge assembly by a pivot member tofacilitate movement of the tool assembly between open and clampedpositions, the tool assembly defining a tissue gap between the cartridgeassembly and the anvil assembly when the tool assembly is in the clampedposition; a drive assembly including a drive beam having proximal anddistal ends and a working member supported on the distal end of thedrive beam, the working member including an upper beam, a lower beam,and a vertical strut interconnecting the upper beam and the lower beam,the vertical strut defining a recess that extends across the tissue gapwhen the tool assembly is in the clamped position; a blade supportedwithin the recess of the vertical strut, the blade extending across thetissue gap when the tool assembly is in the clamped position; and alaser probe disposed within the recess, the laser probe adapted to emita laser beam within the recess across the tissue gap.
 10. The toolassembly of claim 9, wherein the recess of the vertical strut has anopen distal end to receive tissue positioned within the tissue gap. 11.The tool assembly of claim 10, further including a control lineconnecting the laser probe to a handle assembly, the control line beingpartially embedded in the working member.
 12. The tool assembly of claim11, further including a sensor disposed in the recess to detect thelaser beam when emitted the laser beam is emitted from the laser probe.13. The tool assembly of claim 12, wherein the blade extends between thetop and bottom ends of the recess.
 14. The tool assembly of claim 13,wherein the blade is arcuate and convex.
 15. A tool assembly comprising:a heating assembly defining an elongate slot and including one or moreheating pads arranged on either side of the elongated slot; an anvilassembly coupled to the heating assembly by a pivot member to facilitatemovement of the tool assembly between open and clamped positions, thetool assembly defining a tissue gap between the heating assembly and theanvil assembly when the tool assembly is in the clamped position; adrive assembly including a drive beam having proximal and distal endsand a working member supported on the distal end of the drive beam, theworking member including an upper beam, a lower beam, and a verticalstrut interconnecting the upper beam and the lower beam, the driveassembly being moveable to move the working member through the toolassembly; and a laser probe supported on the working member andpositioned to emit a laser beam across the tissue gap as the workingmember is moved through the tool assembly to cut tissue positionedwithin the tissue gap.
 16. The tool assembly of claim 15, wherein thevertical strut defines a recess and the laser probe is supported to emitthe laser beam across the recess.
 17. The tool assembly of claim 16,further including a control line connecting the laser probe to a handleassembly, the control line being partially embedded in the verticalstrut.
 18. The tool assembly of claim 17, further including a sensordisposed in the recess to detect the laser beam when emitted from thelaser probe.
 19. The tool assembly of claim 18, wherein the sensor isconfigured to measure the intensity of the emitted laser beam.
 20. Thetool assembly of claim 17, further including a pair of bipolar heatingpads are arranged on either side of the elongated slot.